A variety of lawn tools are known and available to assist individuals with maintaining their yard. In addition to conventional lawn tools such as hand rakes, shovels, and brooms, various types of powered lawn equipment are designed to increase the speed and efficiency of outdoor maintenance activities. Conventional powered lawn equipment such as lawnmowers, edgers, and trimmers help increase the speed and efficiency of yard maintenance. The majority of powered lawn equipment utilizes small, internal combustion engines that may be of two- or four-stroke design. As can be appreciated, an internal combustion engine is a power source whereby the combustion of a fuel occurs with air inside of a combustion chamber. Combustion of the fuel causes expansion of the ignited gases within the chamber, which applies force and work to an engine component such as a piston, turbine blade, or nozzle to drive the tool output.
The most common source of fuel for powered lawn equipment for internal combustion engines is gasoline, which is purchased at a gas station and stored in a fuel container. For many decades, fuel was commonly stored in a jerrycan, which is a container constructed from pressed steel. Modern fuel containers, however, are available in sizes ranging from one to five gallons or more and are often formed of a plastic material that contains the liquid fuel and vapors therein. Modern fuel containers are subject to both federal and state laws that require fuel containers to be painted bright red and plainly marked with the word “gasoline” or with the warning “flammable—keep fire away.” This ensures the contents of the container are easily identified for safety and kept away from heat sources or open flames.
Current fuel containers are designed to be filled at a gas station and transported to the power equipment for filling. This is preferable to transporting the power equipment to the gas station for filling, as many individuals do not have the capability to transport large equipment such as ride-on lawnmowers to the fuel source itself. Because of this, conventional fuel containers hold a large volume of gasoline to limit the number of trips to a gasoline filling station. While this is beneficial for preventing multiple trips to the gas station, it generally requires a user to transport the equipment in need of fuel to the fuel container or lug the large container to an area where it can be easily accessed. This may be impractical for users with large properties or for landscapers who care for multiple properties in the same neighborhood that are away from their fuel source.
When powered equipment runs out of gasoline and requires refueling, the homeowner and landscaper must stop working and return to the fuel source with the equipment in need of fuel. This extends the amount of time it takes for a homeowner to complete a project, or for a landscaper to finish maintaining a customer's property. To limit the number of trips back to the fuel source, a common practice involves storing gasoline in a conventional water bottle. As can be appreciated, conventional water bottles do not meet the legal requirements for storing fuel and may be mistaken for a water bottle holding a consumable beverage.
The present invention overcomes the problems inherent in conventional gasoline containers with a device that reduces the number of trips back to a fuel source for refilling garden power tools and equipment. The device comprises a portable container for holding a quantity of fuel for use in an internal combustion engine and a self-closing cap for dispensing fluid from the container. The container meets current Environmental Protection Agency requirements for gas cans and is painted bright red in color with identifying indicia on the exterior of the container. The cap meets OSHA regulations and utilizes an automatic closure, wherein the cap automatically springs to the closed position when not pouring. The container additionally includes an attachment means for securing the container to a user's belt loop such that the user can walk with the quantity of fuel without being hampered or bothered during a work activity. The present invention provides a convenient way to carry a quantity of fuel that limits the number of trips back to a fuel source for refilling.